Fran Didn't Get It
by SMBBOOKS
Summary: My take on what the plane ride home was like at the end of the "Fran's Gotta Have It" episode.


_Author's Notes - __My take on what the plane ride home was like during __the "Fran's Gotta Have It" episode…_

_Disclaimer: Don't own it, just wrote it. Had a great time doing it! No offense intended._

Fran may have been sitting right next to Mr. Sheffield on the plane, but she couldn't have been a million more miles away. Her thoughts jumped from one unhappy thing to another – Niles having a heart attack, how worried the children must be, how close, but yet how far apart she and Mr. Sheffield were at this exact moment. Physically they were separated by nothing more than an armrest, but emotionally, well that was something else entirely.

She was certain her showing up unannounced in London was the perfect thing to jump start their relationship. But as soon as she'd experienced his frustrated reaction at seeing her in his hotel room, tiny seeds of doubt had sprouted in her heart. Yes, they'd spent a lovely day together, had a great time at Celine's concert and things seemed very promising when they'd first returned to the hotel, but…

But. Why did there always have to be a "but" when it came to her and Mr. Sheffield? He ran so hot and cold with her. She couldn't tell whether he wanted her or not. He said he did, his body told her he did, but he never followed through on it. Oy, it was enough to make a girl crazy already. 

Fran was tired. Physically and emotionally tired of the roller coaster ride they were on. As much as she loved Mr. Sheffield, something had happened in that hotel room tonight that opened her eyes to the very distinct possibility things might never work out between them. 

It was a reality she'd never forced herself to look at until this very moment. Tears welled up in her eyes and a lump formed in her throat. She quickly turned in her seat and looked out the window at the dark sky. How had her life gotten to this point? So happy earlier in the day, how could misery this deep take such a firm hold on her heart? One of her very best friends lay in a hospital hundreds of miles away probably fighting for his life and the man who held her heart in his hands had rejected her once again. Turning to the one thing she thought might make her feel better (even more of a sure bet than chocolate) she began to pray.

The more Maxwell thought about the events of the day, the more frustrated and upset he became. Thoughts of Niles filled his mind. Growing up together, school days at Eton, how Niles had taken care of him when Sarah died, how close Niles and Miss Fine were…

Miss Fine. The mere thought of what had almost happened in that hotel room terrified him. How had he let things get so out of hand? What had possessed him to kiss her in the elevator in the first place? They had simply been talking about how nice the day had been and then she had looked up at him with those hypnotic eyes and he'd been lost.

Dammit, why had she followed him to London? The woman was simply infuriating. He couldn't understand how or when things had gotten so complicated between them. Deep down, he knew he was to blame. Knew his mixed messages to her had made things horribly worse. He couldn't understand why he didn't seem to have any control over his emotions and feelings when it came to this woman. The complete lack of discipline he had when it came to Miss Fine baffled him. How did she do it? How had she crept under his skin and crawled into his heart? If only Niles were here for him to consult. Somehow, that man knew just what was going on with Miss Fine, when Maxwell more often than not, didn't have a clue.

As he thought of his friend who was now probably facing the biggest battle of his life, fear gripped his heart. What would he do if Niles didn't't make it? Who would he turn to in moments like these? Why had he never told Niles how much his friendship meant to him? What if he never got the chance? 

Maxwell looked over at Miss Fine who had suddenly turned to face the window. He'd caught the look on her face just as she'd turned away from him. What met his gaze made his heart sink. Profound sadness lined her eyes, which if he wasn't't mistaken were full of tears. He saw her shoulders slump and her eyes close. He wanted nothing more than to reach out to her, pull her into his arms and tell her everything was going to be okay. Something stopped him. The truth of it was, he didn't't know if everything _was_ going to be okay. 

He brought his hand up to rub at the tension that was gathering at his temple. As usual, it had no effect. Leaning his head back, he brought his hand back down to rest on the armrest, and as he did so, it collided with Miss Fine's. Instinctively they reached for each other's hands and held on tightly. She turned to look at him and at the same time they said to each other…

"He's going to be fine."

And at the same time, they both thought to themselves, _"And somehow, some way, so will we."_

THE END


End file.
